Summary of the OCC Paper 1 Special Event - Friday 16 March to Wednesday 4 April 2012

1. How to prepare students for Paper 1 ...

Writing problems that often appear in examination responses

etc. (worth no marks)

--> (used in math meaning if...then), do not use in writing

& (write out 'and')

Avoid SMS-speak ('u' instead of 'you' and other instances)

misspelling words that appear in the question or misspelling ITGS words

phrases such as 'it is obvious' contributes nothing to the argument

Know ITGS terminology and void misunderstandings such as

"Internet is broken" meaning the students cannot get access

confusing terminology such "tele-conferencing" with "video-conferencing", “reliability’ with ‘integrity’

a flash drive being called a "USB"

a server that is "not secure" is not called "insecure"

2. Long Range Teaching Strategies for Paper 1

Students should:

recognize that the Triangle is a basis for the questions on Paper 1. The structure on Paper 1 questions shows that students must understand the scenario presented, answer questions regarding the IT systems that underpin that scenario and then move on to address social and ethical impacts relating to the stakeholders.

be guided by command terms from pages 71-72 of the Guide throughout the course in all assignments and tests. They need to receive written feedback regarding how well they address the question and the command term in their responses.

keep good notes (ie written, digital) througout the course so that they have material to review before going into the examination. It will remind them of the discussions and outcomes that took place. Specific details need to be included ITGS vocabulary, IT systems and how they work and description of related scenarios, related social and ethical impacts and any problems that emerge with related solutions and their effectiveness (the later will also help for Paper 2)

have experience in class with applying what they know from studying ITGS to new situations. For example, students may understand concepts relating to networks, Internet, hackers... but can they discuss these concepts in the context of a specific scenario?

practice in applying the Triangle to new situations needs to be on-going by looking a various instances that occur in news articles.

WRITE WRITE WRITE responses to past examination questions and questions written in examination-style and receive FEEDBACK either as assignments or in-class test. A timed question can be used in the classroom periodically.

learn how to organize the responses to extended response questions, use relevant ITGS terminology (IT terminology and/or social and ethical considerations) and provide evidence (specific examples) and make evaluation(s) and conclusions that go beyond being a repeat of what has been written.

have opportunities to analyze news articles as a class, in small groups and individually.

3. Short Range Teaching Strategies for Paper 1

Students should:

read the scenario and be answer the question and command term that is asked

look for the Triangle in the scenario

organize responses before writing (see bullet point above). Include ITGS terminology, specific examples with description/explanation as required by the command term

understand the dangers in using the markscheme (created specifically for examiners) and learn to write full responses

4. Strategies for Examinations...

Provide timed writing in class on Paper 1-type questions and provide written feedback. Any past Paper 2 ( 2007-2011) question can be converted to a Paper 1-type question for practice purposes.

For Paper 1, remind students to read the questions carefully and to be certain to select the scenarios that they confident about (especially when reading part c worth 8 marks).

Students may draw the Triangle on their scratch paper right from the beginning and keep all 4 parts in mind - especially stakeholders and the specific scenario in the question. Answer the question asked.

When students organize their responses and plan their analysis. They need to check for balance in the response on part c (how this is achieved depends on the question). They should know what analysis/judgment/opinion that will be the outcome before they begin to write.

When writing, use trigger words (also called transitional words). See earlier Special Event for Paper 2 where this was discussed.

On the examination, they need to use a formal style of writing. They are reminded that bullet points do not have depth and paragraph/sentence style is better. See previous posting on symbols and words advised not to used in examination responses.

2. Student ScriptsSpecimen Paper 1 SL Q2

This version of the markscheme has been updated due to standardization.
Please do not use the markscheme for this question posted as part of the Specimen Papers on the OCC ITGS HomePage.
Use the markband file for marking part (c) that was used in HL P1 Q4.

3. Student ScriptsSpecimen Paper SL Q3/ HL Q1

This version of the markscheme has been updated due to standardization.
Please do not use the markscheme for this question posted as part of the Specimen Papers on the OCC ITGS HomePage.
Use the markband file for marking part (c) that was used in HL P1 Q4.

4. Student Scripts Specimen Paper 1 HL Q7

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This version of the markscheme has been updated due to standardization.
Please do not use the markscheme for this question posted as part of the Specimen Papers on the OCC ITGS HomePage.
Use the markband file for marking part (c) that was used in HL P1 Q4.